2013 is fast coming to a close but what a year it has been so far, even when you exclude all the back-stabbing, lying, double-dealing, stealing, race-baiting, war mongering, power grabs coming out of Washington.
The History Channel is attacking Christianity almost weekly with its lies, and half-truths, while ancient alien theorists (that always makes me laugh) are trying to convince us that we have no need of God because our forefathers were aliens and they will be back to fight WWIII on our behalf. If you get your views on Christianity from either of these sources you must really be hard up.
God told us that he would give us signs and wonders in the heavens and the earth and if this year is any indication we could well be in for a wild ride.
February 1, a bright fireball soared over Dallas, Texas; and on February 15, the same day that a large asteroid passed only 18,000 miles from the Earth, an explosion above the Chelyabinsk region of Russia released an estimated 500 kilotons of energy, the force of about 30 Hiroshima atomic bombs, detected by sensors in the over 9,000 miles away in the Antarctica. On February 16, the AP, citing a state-run media outlet, reported that Cuba experienced a similar though smaller meteor that shook buildings. On February 22, a giant streak of light over southern California prompted dozens of eyewitnesses to file reports with the American Meteor Society (AMS). And a few days prior to that numerous witnesses reported a meteor over Florida’s eastern coast.
NASA ‘s meteoroid Environment Office admitted to five or six notable fireballs that “might have” dropped meteorites around the U.S. But what really has them baffled is the extraordinary appearance and trajectory of the recent meteor events. “These fireballs are particularly slow and penetrating. They hit the top of the atmosphere moving slower than 15 kilometers per second, decelerated rapidly, and make it to within 50 kilometers of the Earth’s surface.”
I can hardly wait for the Comet ISON expected this fall. If the icy dust ball doesn’t get ripped apart by extreme solar forces, some astronomers have said it could be the “comet of the century,” possibly shining brightly enough to be seen during the daytime, even brighter than the moon.
Scientists are also warning us that while it is impossible to predict when the next monster solar storm will erupt — and equally important, whether Earth will lie in its path when it does erupt, what they do know is that with more sunspots come more storms, and this fall the Sun is set to reach the crest of its 11-year sunspot cycle. Only rarely does a giant solar blast fly directly at Earth but nothing is impossible!
The U.S. Geological Survey keeps records on the number of earthquakes. According to the agency’s stats, the number of magnitude 5.0 to 9.9 earthquakes reached 2,117 in 2010. In 2000, by contrast, the number of such quakes recorded by USGS was 1,505, even though earthquakes of magnitude 7.0 or greater have remained fairly constant. Is the increase of quakes really due to the increase in the number of seismograph stations in the world as some scientists argue or is God trying to wake us up?
The web is ablaze with all sorts of end time theories. There is some mythological unknown planet X out there that is going to either pass so close to the earth that it will tear the planet apart or even worse, if that is possible, actually hit us. Then there is Nostradamus, a 16th century French seer who wrote a collection of nonsensical quatrains published in 1555 that left the door open for numerous interruptations, some of which make even less sense than the quatrain itself.
Rabbi Judah ben Samuel’s Jubilee prophecy of the return of Christ is much more understandable and can be verified, but it is just another man’s attempt to foretell the coming of Christ. And, lets now forget the St. Malachy “last pope prophecy” or the Daniel 9-12 prophecy. The only problem I can see with these theories is that even Christ did not know when he would return so while we may come close to the season, we’ll never know the time. If you want to understand the season, read Matthew 24 and/or Mark 13.
If you want assurances that there will be no WWIII or some mythological planet taking us out, read Revelation, Chapter 21. “And I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away and there was no more sea.” The Greek word translated heaven is ouranos, meaning a new or refreshed eternity, the abode of God. The Greek word translated earth, Kainos, actually means age. So if you read verse 1 correctly, it says “And I saw a new or refreshed heaven age and a new earth age, for the old heaven (age) and old earth age were passed away…” Christ will rule on this earth.
“Thus saith the Lord, Cursed be the man that trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart departed from the Lord. . .Blessed is the man that trusted in the Lord, and whose hope the Lord is.” Jeremiah 17:5-7
As a Christian I believe that our time in this earth age is fast closing but I have no fear of WWIII or destruction of this planet, or even of death (Satan). God is in charge. He has His plan to bring about the end of this age and it will happen exactly as He outlined in his letter to us.
“And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul; but rather fear Him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.” Matt. 10:28
